: Illustration. Photo: Ministry of Health
By Putri, Friday, January 2 2026 | 18:47 WIB – Editor: Untung S – 94
Jakarta, InfoPublik – The Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) emphasized that the situation of influenza A(H3N2) subclade K in Indonesia until the end of December 2025 is still under control and does not show an increase in severity compared to other influenza clades or subclades.
The Director of Infectious Diseases at the Ministry of Health, Prima Yosephine, explained that globally an increase in influenza A(H3) cases began to be observed in the United States from the 40th week of 2025, along with the arrival of winter.
Subclade K itself, said Prima through the official statement received PublicInfo Friday (2/1/2026) said it was first identified by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in August 2025 and has now been reported in more than 80 countries.
“Based on the WHO assessment and available epidemiological data, influenza A(H3N2) subclade K does not show an increase in severity. The symptoms that appear are generally similar to seasonal flu, such as fever, cough, runny nose, headache and sore throat,” said Prima.
He continued, in the Asian region, subclade K has been reported in a number of countries, including China, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Thailand since July 2025. Even though influenza A(H3) is the dominant variant, the trend of influenza cases in these countries has shown a decline in the last two months.
In Indonesia, surveillance results also show that influenza A(H3) is the dominant variant. The national trend of influenza cases has been recorded as decreasing in the last two months.
Based on the whole genome sequencing (WGS) examination completed on December 25 2025, subclade K was detected since August 2025 through the ILI-SARI sentinel surveillance system in various health service facilities.
“By the end of December 2025, 62 cases of influenza A(H3N2) subclade K were recorded spread across eight provinces, with the largest number in East Java, South Kalimantan and West Java. The majority of cases occurred in women and children,” he explained.
Of the total 843 positive influenza specimens examined, 348 samples underwent WGS examination. All variants detected are known variants and are currently circulating globally in the WHO surveillance system.
The Indonesian Ministry of Health emphasized that it will continue to strengthen surveillance, reporting and preparedness to respond to developments in the influenza situation according to existing dynamics.
As a preventive measure, people are advised to adopt clean and healthy living habits (PHBS), maintain their immune system, and get annual influenza vaccinations, especially for vulnerable groups such as the elderly, pregnant women and people with comorbidities.
The influenza vaccine remains effective in preventing serious illness, hospitalization, and death. People are also advised to stay at home when experiencing flu symptoms.
“Use a mask, apply cough etiquette, and immediately access health care facilities if symptoms worsen or do not improve in more than three days,” said Prima.
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